Lawmakers call for audit of state hospital police force

March 1, 2012

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

1 of 5

Stephanie Contreras reads through the case file on her brother, Timothy Lazzini, a 25-year-old quadriplegic who died of internal bleeding in 2005. An autopsy revealed two large, Q-tip-like swabs stuck in his stomach. MONICA LAM/CALIFORNIA WATCH

1 of 5

Stephanie Contreras created a photo collage showing her brother, Timothy Lazzini, with family and friends. Lazzini, a resident of the Sonoma Developmental Center, suffered from severe cerebral palsy. After he died in 2005, an autopsy revealed that two large, wooden swabs had perforated his stomach. MONICA LAM/CALIFORNIA WATCH

1 of 5

Van Ingraham, right, pictured a year before his death with his brother, Larry Ingraham, at Fairview Developmental Center. COURTESY OF LARRY INGRAHAM

1 of 5

An X-ray of Van Ingraham's neck shows a severe spinal break that experts said likely was a homicide. No one has ever been charged with his death. COURTESY OF LARRY INGRAHAM

1 of 5

Van Ingraham's room at Fairview Developmental Center, which he shared with three other men. A handwritten sign above his empty bed reads, “Van's bed.” COURTESY OF LARRY INGRAHAM

Stephanie Contreras reads through the case file on her brother, Timothy Lazzini, a 25-year-old quadriplegic who died of internal bleeding in 2005. An autopsy revealed two large, Q-tip-like swabs stuck in his stomach. MONICA LAM/CALIFORNIA WATCH

California lawmakers have asked for a state audit into police investigations of suspicious patient deaths and injuries at institutions for the developmentally disabled.

"The goal is to protect the clients and to give them the best possible service," Anderson said in an interview. "We're not convinced one way or the other. We just want to get to the truth."

Last week, the state Health and Human Services Agency said it had engaged the services of special investigators to look into safety and security at the developmental centers. The agency is awaiting results from a review of the centers conducted by outside consultants since 2010.

The Office of Protective Services, the police force at the five state developmental centers, has made numerous mistakes when investigating potential patient abuse, California Watch reported Sunday. Despite 327 substantiated patient abuse cases and 762 unexplained injuries at the institutions since 2006, hardly any of the cases have led to prosecutions.

The board-and-care institutions – in Sonoma, Los Angeles, Riverside, Tulare and Orange counties – are home to about 1,800 patients with cerebral palsy, severe autism and intellectual disabilities. The state spends about $577 million to operate the institutions, or roughly $300,000 per patient.

The state Department of Developmental Services, which runs the centers and the police force, has hired an Alabama-based consulting firm, the Consortium on Innovative Practices, to review operations across the institutions. Rebecca Wright, the firm's president, said in an interview two weeks ago that discussions on how to upgrade police investigations first began in July 2010.

In their request, Beall and Anderson said they wanted the state auditor to focus on what standards exist for the Office of Protective Services and how well it has met them. The lawmakers also want details on how state agencies and the Legislature monitor the police force and if that oversight needs to improve.

"We need to get control of this to ensure nothing bad is happening," Anderson said.

State lawmakers also announced last week that they would hold public hearings and conduct on-site investigations of the Office of Protective Services. The state Senate and Assembly's human services committees are working to schedule a date and witnesses to testify at a hearing in March.

In its report, California Watch detailed mistakes into the investigation of a suspicious patient death at Fairview Developmental Center in Orange County. The patient, 50-year-old Van Ingraham, was discovered on his bedroom floor with a broken neck in the early morning on June 6, 2007. He died six days later.

Police at Fairview did not collect physical evidence from the scene and waited five days to begin interviewing potential witnesses. No arrests have been made in the case.

Contact the writer: California Watch is a project of the nonprofit Center for Investigative Reporting. Contact the author at rgabrielson@cironline.org. For more, visit californiawatch.org

Related Links

User Agreement

Keep it civil and stay on topic. No profanity, vulgarity, racial
slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about
tragedies will be blocked. By posting your comment, you agree to
allow Orange County Register Communications, Inc. the right to
republish your name and comment in additional Register publications
without any notification or payment.